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Big B rejects Australian ‘Doctorate’ over attacks on Indian
students New Delhi:
Disappointed over recent ‘racial’ attacks on Indian students in Australia, Bollywood
superstar Amitabh Bachchan has declined to accept the honorary Doctorate degree
scheduled to be conferred upon him by the University of Queensland. Amitabh has
stated in his popular Blog--bigb.bigadda.com--that he is aggrieved by the attacks
on Indian students in Australia and hence does not deem it right to accept such
an honourary degree, which is to be given to him in July during a function. Asking
his fans to suggest whether his decision to refuse the Doctorate from Australian
university was justified, Bachchan said: “I mean no disrespect to the Institution
that honours me, but under the present circumstances, where citizens of my own
country are subjected to such acts of inhuman horror, my conscience does not permit
me to accept this decoration from a country that perpetrates such indignity to
my fellow countrymen,” said Amitabh Bachchan in his blog. Big B had last week
accepted an offer from the Queensland University of Technology, Brisbane, Australia,
for decorating him with an Honorary Doctorate for his contribution to the world
of entertainment. This issue was under discussion and consideration by the University
Board. “It was to be conferred on me in the month of July as a part of the celebrations
being held there, to commemorate a retrospective of my films to be inaugurated
in the city,” Big B further writes in the Blog. Big B, as Amitabh Bachchan is
popularly known in India and among millions of his fans across the world, has
sought his fans’ reactions over his decision and dilemma. “And here is where I
need your inputs. Am I right in thinking so? And, if yes, then is my act of refusing
the honour justified or not? I shall put this up as my POLL question,” Bachchan
adds. The University of Queensland (UQ) is one of Australia''s premier learning
and research institutions. It is the oldest university in Queensland. Rudd
speaks with Manmohan Singh, to take steps to ensure Top
safety of Indian students Canberra
(Australia)/New Delhi: Australian Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has reassured
his Indian counterpart, Manmohan Singh that his government will take appropriate
steps to ensure the safety and security of Indian students in Australia. Diplomatic
relations between the two countries are said to be tense after India expressed
anger and dismay over attacks on Indian students in Australia. In a telephone
conversation, Rudd congratulated Dr Singh on his recent re-election and also discussed
the violent assaults, sources told The Age. A statement released last night indicated
Dr Singh spoke strongly to Rudd about the attacks. The Indian Prime Minister had
"suitably" conveyed his concerns about the vicious attacks, it said. The Indian
foreign ministry called in Australian High Commissioner John McCarthy on Friday
to discuss the matter. It was the first time McCarthy was called in by the Indian
Government since the 2007 arrest of Muhammad Haneef, an Indian doctor working
in Australia, on terrorism-related charges.Indian Foreign Minister S.M. Krishna
spoke to Foreign Minister Stephen Smith about the issue. Krishna said the Australian
Government had assured him that steps were being taken to protect Indian students.
India''s High Cmmissioner to Australia Sujatha Singh said Victoria Police were
insensitive towards some Indian crime victims. Singh said many students felt insecure
and some were unhappy with the police treatment. Her comments came as Victoria
Police again denied that the increasing attacks — which the Indian student community
claims could be as many as 70 in 12 months — were racially motivated. Singh said
the Indian high commission in Canberra had received complaints from students about
police. When an incident was reported, there was a perception that there was sometimes
"a delay in reacting and … perhaps a lack of sensitivity dealing with the issues".
Singh flew to Melbourne from Canberra to meet Premier John Brumby and police Chief
Commissioner Simon Overland following the attack on Sravan Kumar Theerthala, 24,
last weekend. He was allegedly racially abused and stabbed with a screwdriver
at a party at a house in Hadfield, near Glenroy. Last night he remained in a coma
in intensive care at the Royal Melbourne Hospital. A 17-year-old from Glenroy
has been charged with attempted murder. It was the third serious attack this month.
Trauma psychologist Dr Michael O''Neill, who works with Indian victims of crime
in Melbourne, said he saw on average one bashed student a week and about half
of those attacks were racial. Meira
Kumar likely to be new Lok Sabha Speaker Top New
Delhi: Congress Party is likely to finalise the name of Union Water Resource
Minister Meira Kumar for the post of Lok Sabha Speaker, NDTV quoted sources as
saying. However, another TV Channel stated the names of Congress leader Girija
Kumar Vyas and Meira Kumar was doing the rounds till late evening. Meanwhile,
Congress Party has proposed to assign the post of Deputy Speaker to the main Opposition
party, Bharatiya Janata Party, as per Parliamentary convention. Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh called up Leader of the Opposition in Lok Sabha, Lal Krishna Advani
in the evening to inform him about UPA Government's proposal over Deputy Speaker's
post, a ZEE news channel report stated in late evening. Earlier in the day, a
high-level meet of the Congress party, which included Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh and UPA chairperson Sonia Gandhi, was held here on Saturday to finalise
the name for the post of the Lok Sabha Speaker. The Core Group meet of the Congress
was conducted at the residence of PM' Dr. Singh in the afternoon. Other prominent
leaders attending the meet included Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee, Home Minister
P. Chidambaram and Defence Minister A. K. Antony. Kishore Chandra Deo, a senior
Congress MP from Andhra Pradesh, is the front runner for the post. During the
meet, the Congress leadership had also discussed whether the post of Deputy Speakership
should be given to the Opposition as per convention or to some ally.
Meira
Kumar - A profile: Congress leader Meira Kumar, popular known as the daughter
of the former Deputy Prime Minister and prominent Dalit leader, Babu Jagjivan
Ram and freedom fighter, Indrani Devi, hails from Bihar. Born in Patna in 1945,
Meira Kumar is a law graduate and holds a Masters in English literature. Meira
joined the Indian Foreign Service in 1973 and served at embassies in Spain, United
Kingdom and Mauritius. Meira Kumar entered electoral politics in 1985 and was
elected from Bijnor in Uttar Pradesh. She became Member of Parliament in the 11th
and 12th Lok Sabha by contesting from Delhi's Karol Bagh constituency. In 1999,
she lost her seat but was able to get re-elected with a record majority from her
father's former constituency of Sasaram in Bihar. In 2004, Meira was inducted
into the Manmohan Singh cabinet, as Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment,
in the Congress-led United Progressive Alliance government. On May 29, 2009, Meira
assumed charge as the Union Minister for Water Resources in the newly elected
United Progressive Alliance government under the leadership of Dr. Manmohan Singh.
She is married to Manjul Kumar, who is presently a Supreme Court lawyer. The couple
have three married children. Suresh
Kalmadi says India is ahead in countdown for Commonwealth Games Top
New Delhi: Chairman of the organising Committee
of Commonwealth Games, Suresh Kalmadi has said that India is ahead of the deadline
in the completion of the all facilities to host the Commonwealth Games at New
Delhi in 2010. Addressing a press conference after visiting a couple of sites
here on Friday, Kalmadi said, "As the Chairman of the managing committee of the
Commonwealth Games, I'm telling you that the things are on track and everything
is on schedule and some things are ahead of schedule." As far as the security
is concerned, he mentioned that India is well prepared and none of the participating
nations need to worry on this aspect. "two officials from the Commonwealth Games
Federation have met the Home Secretary and we are in constant touch with them
and we are giving them all our feedback. You know there is no question of being
satisfied. It's a continuous process and we will have to do our best as far as
security is concerned and we are at it," added Kalmadi. The Commonwealth Games
is expected to boost India's image as a global powerhouse. The games may also
provide rich pickings for real estate developers. Delhi is to stage the 2010 Commonwealth
Games at an estimated cost of 70 billion rupees. Delhi had bagged the contract
after beating the Canadian city Hamilton in the bid for the games. The 2010 Commonwealth
Games will be India's first big International sports event since the 1982 Asian
Games. New Delhi hosted the inaugural Asian Games in 1951 and again in 1982. Violence
in Patna following murder of nine-year-old Top Patna:
Murder of a nine-year old, who was allegedly kidnapped by his neighbours,
triggered violent protest here. Agitated local residents burnt tyres and raised
slogans on Saturday to express their anguish over the murder of Satyam, the killed
boy, allegedly kidnapped by two of his neighbours. Anguished over the incident,
local residents ransacked suspects' shop and burnt tyres in the middle of the
road to display their pain and anger. According to Pankaj Kumar, Deputy Superintendent
of Police, Satyam's two neighbours, a grocery owner and his son have been arrested
after they confessed to their crime before police. "Satyam and Abhinav were two
friends. Satyam used to visit his place often. One day the latter lured Satyam
and took him along. He had planned his kidnapping a month ago and then murdered
him. Abhinav had thought that he would show Satyam's clothes to his parents and
take money. After murdering him, he called from Kankarbagh booth and demanded
ransom," said Pankaj Kumar. However, Satyam's uncle complained that the police
officials refused to file FIR earlier and had to approach the higher authorities.
Only then action could be taken. "They did not register our FIR and did not cooperate
with us. When we went to higher authorities, they helped us. If on 28th itself
police officials had helped us, my nephew would have been alive," said Manish,
Satyam's uncle. Satyam's father Rajesh Kumar, a businessman received a ransom
call for 50,00,000 rupees on Thursday night (May 28). The boy's decomposed body
was recovered from a house on Saturday morning and the exact cause of death could
be known only after post-mortem. Wal-Mart
launches store in Amritsar Top Amritsar:
Wal-Mart Stores Incorporation opened its first cash-and-carry store in Amritsar
on Saturday. Bharti Wal-Mart, the joint venture between the American retailer
and India's Bharti Enterprises, was scheduled to launch the store on Tuesday.
But the programme was deferred following recent riots in Punjab due to the Sikh
Guru attack incident in Vienna. The store--Best Price Modern Wholesale-will be
the first of 10 to 15 planned wholesale facilities in India, measuring about 50,000-100,000
square feet each and employing about 5,000 people over the next seven years. The
entry of multinational retailers into India's fragmented and tightly controlled
retail industry is mired in controversy and Wal-Mart's entry is seen as a sign
of foreign investors' confidence in the country after ruling coalition was re-elected
two weeks ago. "The world is changing, in India the youth is coming in, they want
better stores if you go and look at our store here today, which we have made a
model 'Mera Kirana' you look at the store, it tells you a story. You will see
with this cash and carry coming in, with the best price coming in, you will see
once the people come in and start linking with us, they will see the change,"
said Rajan Bharti Mittal, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Bharti Enterprises.
A big number of customers thronged the store on the first day itself. Used to
moving from one shop to another for their groceries and other requirements, the
customers at the store were happy at finding all their needful things under one
roof. "Earlier we had to search through various shops for the things we wanted,
but now here we are getting everything under one roof and the cost is also same,
maybe less," said an unidentified customer. India's retail industry, currently
estimated at $500 billion, is seen rising to more than 800 billion dollars by
2013 but less than 5 percent of the market is in the hands of modern retailers. |
